Even as the Arab spring unfolds across the region, I learned with profound astonishment that Mr. Jack Persekian, director of the Sharjah Art Foundation, has been dismissed as “punishment” for allowing an artist invited to the Sharjah Biennial total freedom of expression. I am the artist in question. My installation “Maportaliche/Ecritures sauvages” [It has no importance/Wild Writings] has been censored and removed from the Biennial.

A recent hate campaign has been waged against the London-based academic and imam, Dr Usama Hasan. He has been victimised, accused of apostasy and has received death threats for his comments on evolution and the woman's right to choose whether or not to wear hijab. The Board of the Muslim Women’s Network-UK (http://www.mwnuk.co.uk/) strongly condemns the bullying and harassment of Dr Hasan.

The Gender Justice Uncovered 2010 Awards ask us to "Seek to identify the best and worst decisions or statements related to gender made in English, Spanish or Portuguese within a judicial process. A jury, made up of three renowned figures will choose the “Gavel”and the “Bludgeon”decisions. The three most sexist decisions will receive bronze, silver and gold Bludgeons and the three decisions that best promote gender equality will receive bronze, silver and gold Gavels. The People’s Choice Awards will be given based on the votes from the public. Those who nominate the winners of the People's Choice Awards will be invited to attend the Awards ceremony in Madrid. Deadline to nominate:April 4, 2011; Deadline to vote:April 25, 2011; The winners will be announced on June 2, 2011 at a very special ceremony!” Justice For Iran has nominated Ayatollah Mohseni Ejei, Iran’s general prosecutor and the majority of Iranian Supreme Court because of their recent unfair and discriminatory decision which discredit women’s right for divorce based on the marriage contract’s conditions.

[Statement from City Circle] In recent months, it has been very distressing for us to watch Dr Usama Hasan, a core member of City Circle's management team who has also served with distinction as our Director, endure a nasty, intolerant campaign to remove him as an imam from his boyhood mosque and to cast him outside of the fold of Islam on account of views he has expressed as a scholar and a scientist in good faith and conviction.

To the people of Sudan: First we salute the bravery and grace of the young Sudanese women who came out and reported and gave evidence to the atrocious and savage sexual harassment they suffered at the hand of elements of Sudanese security organs. We address you today with a feeling of bitterness and anger for the gross violation of the constitutional and human rights of women and the low level of official treatment directed at them in Sudan. We have all seen and read in the media the statements of many women and how they were sexually harassed and intimidated and some were actually raped as a result of their participation in the peaceful demonstration instigated recently by Sudanese people demanding legitimate demands upheld by the constitution. They were faced by a brutal and inhuman treatment encompassed in the draconian and savage piece of law called (Public Order Law) and other Sudanese laws that degrades and disrespects the rights of women in particular and extend to all rights of Sudanese citizens.

As everyone knows, today is International Women’s Day, and it is the first day for the celebration of women rights after the success of the Egyptian Revolution, which forced the former president Mubarak out of power in February. For the past two weeks, a call was made for citizens to participate in a million women march in Tahrir square to celebrate the day and honour the martyrs of Egypt: women and men. The march was supposed to be between 2:00- 6:00 PM on March 8 and the square was chosen as a symbol for the determination of the Egyptian pro-democracy movement.

An imam of an east London mosque has been subject to death threats and intimidation for expressing his views on evolution and women's right to refuse the veil. Dr Usama Hasan, vice-chairman at Leyton mosque and a senior lecturer in engineering at Middlesex University, ceased delivering Friday prayers after 25 years of service when 50 Muslim protesters disrupted his lecture by handing out leaflets against him and shouting in the mosque for his execution. A statement from the secretary of the mosque, Mohammad Sethi, that was leaked to extremist websites, said Hasan had been suspended after his lecture resulted in "considerable antagonism" from the community and for his "belief that Muslim women are allowed to uncover their hair in public".